Songs of the Smokie Mountains Digital Album

In 1967, Bill Owens’ music career was on the rise. As a songwriter for Combine Music he was writing or co-writing hits for Bill Phillips, Skeeter Davis, Porter Wagoner, and his niece, Dolly Parton, who was on the edge of stardom herself. In spite of this success, he hadn’t “gotten above his raisin’” as the expression went, and the desire to honor his roots and family musical traditions led to a most unusual album.

Songs of the Smokie Mountains by Bill Owens and The Kinfolk, was both a time capsule of the music Owens had grown up with and a tribute to his greatest musical influence, his father, the Rev. Jake Owens. Recorded in the East Tennessee home of Bill’s sister, Dorothy Jo Owens, the album featured 16 recordings of traditional mountain songs and hymns. In addition to solo performances by Bill, Dorthy Jo joined in on some songs on banjo and vocals, and several cuts featured their father, Jake Owens on vocals and fiddle.

The result is a fascinating record of East Tennessee mountain music and performance. The same type of family musical jam session that Dolly Parton and her siblings grew up hearing on the front porch of their Tennessee mountain home. Released on the small independent label, REM Records in 1967, this limited album became a sought-after collectible by traditional folk music fans, and is now available in this new edition.

• Historical liners notes detailing the musical legacy of the Owens family

• Background on the recording of the album and the songs featured

• One the few commercially released recordings of Dolly Parton’s grandfather Jake Owens

TRACKLIST

1. On Top of Old Smoky – Bill Owens And The Kinfolk, Smoky Mountain DNA Series (02:45)
2. Gently Are the Weeping Willows – Bill Owens And The Kinfolk, Smoky Mountain DNA Series (02:05) 
3. Old Mountain Dew – Bill Owens And The Kinfolk, Smoky Mountain DNA Series (02:21)
4. Barbara Allen – Bill Owens And The Kinfolk, Smoky Mountain DNA Series (04:23) 
5. Tum A Gee Wah – Bill Owens And The Kinfolk, Smoky Mountain DNA Series (01:44) 
6. I Live in Glory – Bill Owens And The Kinfolk, Smoky Mountain DNA Series (01:39) 
7. Oh, I Want to See Him – Bill Owens And The Kinfolk, Smoky Mountain DNA Series (01:21) 
8. Maggie – Bill Owens And The Kinfolk, Smoky Mountain DNA Series (02:08) 
9. Bury Me Beneath the Willow – Bill Owens And The Kinfolk, Smoky Mountain DNA Series (01:59) 
10. Free as a Little Bird – Bill Owens And The Kinfolk, Smoky Mountain DNA Series (01:33)
11. Tom Dooley – Bill Owens And The Kinfolk, Smoky Mountain DNA Series (02:39) 
12. Careless Love – Bill Owens And The Kinfolk, Smoky Mountain DNA Series (01:07) 
13. Down in the Valley – Bill Owens And The Kinfolk, Smoky Mountain DNA Series (02:56)
14. Amazing Grace Melodies – Bill Lee And The Kinfolk, Smoky Mountain DNA Series (02:29) 
15. Ninety and Nine – Bill Owens And The Kinfolk, Smoky Mountain DNA Series (01:45) 
16. Matthew 24 – Bill Owens And The Kinfolk, Smoky Mountain DNA Series (01:40)